Dramatica Theory Book

Chapter 18: The Progression of Plot (Continued)

Progressive Appreciations

So just what are Progressive Appreciations? Chances are, you are already familiar with them. They are Acts, Sequences, Scenes, and Events. The Progressive Appreciations are not unlike the way we measure time in Days, Hours, Minutes, and Seconds. We can see that a Minute does not stand independently, but is nested within an Hour, which is in turn nested within a Day. Similarly, Scenes are appreciations that happen within an Act. Events are nested in Scenes which are nested in Sequences which are nested in Acts.

No event stands alone, but will bear something of the flavor or identity of the larger units in which it resides and the smaller units it contains. If this begins to sound like the thematic appreciations we have already explored, it is no accident. Domain, Concern, Range, and Problem narrow the issue of the story when the story is seen as a state. Act, Sequence, Scene, and Event narrow the issue of the story when the story is seen as a process. The Static Appreciations tell us what a story is about. The Progressive Appreciations tell us how a story unfolds. Taken together, the Static and Progressive Appreciations convey a story's meaning.